My mother taught for over forty years. She taught in public elementary schools outside NY City, in the Pennsylvania suburbs, in an elite private school in Princeton, directed a New Jersey cooperative nursery school, and when she retired, she volunteered in a third-grade classroom in San Diego. As you might expect, over the course of four decades she learned tens of thousands of names. When I became pregnant with my first child, I asked her what I should name my baby. I shouldn’t have been surprised that she had opinions about names. Though her thoughts pertained to naming her grandchild, I believe her theories can be applied to naming characters too. Her sage advice and some tips I’ve picked up during my writing journey are listed below.
- Choose a name that doesn’t confuse people. In 1994 and 1995 when my children were born, unisex names were all the rage. Names like Parker, James, and Blake were in trend. Also, celebrities were spelling their baby’s names in unique ways. Emmalee instead of Emily. Dafydd instead if David. Cydnee instead of Sydney. My mother encouraged me to steer clear of these fads. I believe that this same wisdom is applicable when naming novel characters, not just babies. Knowing a character’s gender from the get-go is key. Also, you don’t want readers to stumble over an unusual name spelling and get pulled out of your story.
- Consider choosing a name that adds meaning and depth to your story. My athletic grandfather, William, desperately wanted a son. When my grandmother gave birth to their third daughter, she named her Wilhelmina and called her Billie. This name choice tells me a lot about my grandfather, and also about his relationship with his third daughter. That she was likely going to be his last child, that he hoped she’d be sporty like him, and that he considered her special. After all, she was his namesake. It also tells me that my Aunt Billie had a lot of expectations placed upon her even before she learned to crawl or utter her first word. Don’t just pick the first name that pops into your head. Failing to select a name for a reason, can be a missed opportunity.
- Choose names that start with different letters. If you’re on a reality show, it’s cute when everyone has similar sounding names like Kim, Kloe, Kourtney, Kris, Kendall, and Kylie, but not so much in a novel. Don’t annoy or confuse readers. Pick character names that start with different letters.
- Along a similar vein, choose ethnic names that most readers can pronounce. One of my critique group friends is writing a book set in India. It makes total sense that his characters would have Indian names. But I’d advice selecting Amar over Abhimanyu. You don’t want your readers to put down your novel because their tongue tied.
- Don’t chose a name with a negative connotation or select a famous person’s name unless there’s a plot reason for doing so. When I was pregnant with my daughter, I wanted to name her Isabelle. My mother opposed the name on the grounds that Isabelle was one of Cinderella’s mean stepsisters. She claimed she would think of that mean stepsister whenever she heard my daughter’s name. I’m pretty sure she was exaggerating, but’s it’s better to avoid names with negative connotations, unless the choice is intentional and adds to the storyline. The same is true of giving your characters famous names like Elvis Presley or Britney Spears.
- Limit the number of character names in your story. Again, this all about confusion. You don’t want your readers to be overwhelmed. If you can avoid naming a character, don’t name them. If you can combine or cut characters, do that too.
- Carefully name streets, towns, and buildings, not just characters. All names matter because these details add texture to your story. When I lived in New Jersey I took regular trips down to my vacation home in Florida. I kept a notebook in my car and jotted down names of streets, towns that spoke to me. I still use them when writing fiction today.
- Consider going against type, or not. If your character is a cheerleader, you might go with the stereotype and name her Ashely, Brandi, or Tiffany. But if you want your cheerleader to be more memorable, you could call her Mildred, Irma, or Myrtle. It’s you call.
- Research your characters’ names by Googling them or by having beta readers critique your novel. We think we recognize famous or embarrassing names, but this isn’t always the case. You don’t want to give your protagonist’s sweet kindergartener the same name as a famous porn star.
- Consider naming characters after people in your life, or not. My name is Mary and both my grandmothers were named Mary too. My grandmothers were flattered that my mother chose to give me their names. But not everyone’s going to like it if they pick up your novel and discover that you’ve given a character their name, especially if that character is flawed. I’ve named characters after people in my life because something about that character reminds me of them. But I use the names as placeholders only. I change them before the final draft, to avoid upsetting friends and relatives.
So, do character names matter? Of course. Everything matters when you’re writing a novel—plot, setting, pacing, story arch, and names too.
FYI, my mother’s name was Joan Louise Fry (maiden name) Schwartz (married name.) I believe she would have liked seeing her name in this post, but I’m not sure.
